Liam Keane (21), from Kanturk in Co Cork, was driving near his home when he spotted water bubbling out of the huge hole in the road.

And an internet video showing Liam bathing in the pothole has been watched by more than 40,000 viewers.

"It was a bit of craic – I saw a video of a friend of mine putting a traffic cone into the hole so I decided to go one better," he said.

The hole, located on a mountainside roadway at Lismire, near Kanturk, was almost 5ft deep.

Wearing shorts, he jumped into the pool just a few days after Christmas while girlfriend Stephanie Cronin filmed the prank.

"It was a burst water main and it had made a hole in the road, it was there for a few days but it wasn't fixed.

"I put on my shorts and jumped in – it's all doom and gloom at the moment, with the Budget and all, so hopefully I've made a few people laugh," he said.

"There was a fierce amount of pressure there and I had to really push my way into the water."

Liam's film has had an unexpected benefit for locals in the area and he has offered to help other communities with their pothole woes. "The minute the video went up and got the views the council appeared up there and filled in the hole within 24 hours," he said.

"So basically if you want your pothole filled, get on to me.

"We looked over the video and saw that it was very funny so I decided to put it up on Facebook – I thought we'd get about 20 likes.

"People in Australia, America, all over the world, have watched it."

A spokesman for Cork County Council was unavailable for comment yesterday.

It is understood that the council had recently fixed a burst main close by, but pressure and high rainfall caused a further breach in the road further down the hillside.